Before You Set Your 2019 Goals, Here's What You Can Do To Get Ready

Happy New Year, hurrah, welcome to 2019!

fluent show shannon kennedy

I bet you've been itching for January to kick off so you can go full steam ahead in lots of new language projects! But before that, let's not forget the year that's just gone by.

That's right, there are some goodies and lessons in the old year that can make a huge difference in how successful you'll be in 2019.

We'll find them with an annual review! For this purpose, I hung out with my friend and 10-language polyglot Shannon Kennedy to talk through her experiences of language in 2018, and how to set the best possible goals so your year goes better than ever.

Hit play to listen to our podcast:

In our conversation, Shannon shared her stories of how 2018 went as a language study year.

A New Language Learning Routine

Shannon's language learning routine changed away from setting specific task goals like "learn 30 new words". It is now more free and focuses on time spent with the language, which allows space for inspiration and still means a lot of productivity.

Shannon also had to deal with big routine changes like the loss of her 2-hour commute which used to provide lots of focused language time. She quickly learnt how to make up for that loss and now pairs her activities with more intention, for example using household chores as a great opportunity to put on an audio course or a podcast.

The Value of Discipline Over Motivation

Shannon also talks about how motivation can be a bad friend for language learners. It's just not as reliable as you would want it to be. She discovered just how valuable discipline is instead, and the difference it can make when you make discipline a value in your study routine.

How To Set Great Language Learning Goals

Finally, we discussed the way Shannon sets herself goals and works with the structure of Vision Goals and Path Goals. She shares a few of her own Vision Goals and I promise you, they're among the best I have EVER heard from a language learner. These goals are your "why", your source of all the mental energy you may need to focus on your language and keep moving forward.

TIP: If you can anchor your goal in real life and make it about a real situation you'd like to experience, it will be a more powerful and helpful Vision Goal.

Here Are The Year Review Questions

You can use them to conduct your own review of 2018 and set goals for the next year.

  • How would you sum up the year in your languages?
  • What changed in your life and in your languages in 2018?
  • What lessons do you think you learnt from the year 2018?
  • What surprised you?
  • What will you change going forward?
  • Looking forward, what are your language learning goals for 2019?

Shannon's top 3 books of 2018

Shannon's top 3 apps of 2018

Shannon's top 3 courses

What Were Your Top Books, Apps, and Courses?

And do you set yourself regular vision goals?

Share them in the comments below!